SUBSCRIBE & WIN! Sign up for the Daily CHAT News Today Newsletter for a chance to win a $75 South Country Co-op gift card!

CP NewsAlert: Charges expected to be dropped against chief in violent arrest

Jun 24, 2020 | 10:13 AM

FORT MCMURRAY, Alta. — Charges are expected to be dropped against a prominent northern Alberta First Nations chief who was the subject of a violent arrest earlier this year.

The case of Chief Allan Adam of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation is to be in front of a Fort McMurray provincial court judge today and court records show charges of resisting arrest and assaulting a peace officer are to be withdrawn.

The move comes after the RCMP dash-cam footage of Adam’s arrest was made public earlier this month.

The 12-minute video shows Adam, who was stopped for an expired plate, walking back and forth between his truck and a RCMP cruiser, shouting profanities at an officer.

Another Mountie then charges at Adam, tackling him to the ground and punching him in the head.

The RCMP initially stated that the officers’ actions were reasonable, while the province’s police watchdog has since said it is investigating the arrest.

The Canadian Press